Redtravel

We didn’t have cruise line insurance. We have a yearly Allianz travel policy. We didn’t make any insurance claim since we were home. We didn’t have paxlovid with us. We both tested negative at disembarkation. My spouse tested positive two days later, called family doctor who prescribed paxlovid. We contacted Celebrity to report the case for tracing only. We didn’t ask for anything. We were amazed that they refunded us.

Did you notify Windstar that you tested positive? In June, we went on a 10 day Cruise( not ws). It was a big ship. Even though there were signs to socially distance, it didn’t happen. Most people didn’t wear masks. I did. Two days after disembarkation, my spouse tested positive for Covid. Fully vaxed and 2 boosters. Took Paxlovid and only had mild symptoms for a day. I didn’t get Covid. We notified the cruise line since our cabin steward was probably exposed. Cruise line thanked us for reporting the positive case and surprisingly refunded the value of 5 days of the cruise. At the time, cdc quarantine was 5 days. I was amazed. reading info on Windstar, I wonder how they respond to positive Covid during or after a cruise. We are thinking about a last minute sailing on Star Breeze. Read about Covid on recent sailings. Should I book or skip it?

They used to put the bottle of bubbly wine in your cabin on embarkation. Nice touch. Not anymore. Embarkation had no captains club welcome letter. After a few days, we asked our cabin steward about captains club amenities since we didn’t get any info. Cabin steward gave us the welcome letter and told us to let him know when we wanted the bubbly…red or white. Chose red. Terrible. As elite plus, we used to enjoy Captains club amenities. On our June cruise, we felt that Captains club was a forgotten afterthought. We had drink package. We missed the evening captains club event. Not being held because of Covid. No welcome Captains club reception. Again Covid. Meet & Greet is no longer held. Morning Captains club breakfast was poorly attended. Host never spoke with us except to ask to see our seapass before entering. Seems like being elite plus isn’t valuable. We did use the laundry. Service was very slow. We used Captains lib WiFi time because the All In WiFi was extremely slow or down. Next cruise is not on X.

Amsterdam disembarkation times can vary from those posted. It depends on the tides and the canal lock schedule. Last cruise ( Windstar Star breeze)that I disembarked from in Amsterdam was late. Scheduled for 6 am. Got stuck in the line to go through the canal. Had to wait our turn. Actually was able to get off ship after 9 am. Fortunately, we were staying in Amsterdam. Many people missed planes. Windstar was amazing. They helped people make alternate arrangements. Some people who missed flights stayed over at the hotel that were in. Wonder if Oceania would help in that kind of situation.

Had power plug taken on Celebrity once. Had to report to the luggage deck to claim. It’s used for medical devices. Got it back after explaining. No other cruise line has taken my power plug away. All it annoying. In June I sailed on X. Brought a multi outlet device with no cord. It wasn’t taken away.

Did it cost more apart or together? Never thought of pricing it both ways. If it’s cheaper apart, my spouse might object. It’s ok with me. New way to make money? What’s next? Buying tickets to use elevators or tenders? More exercise incentive to climb stairs and swim to shore. Rental fee for chaises…extra near the pool? Celebrity has a reputation of having lots of extra charges.

NCL will become the New Covid Line. sorry, but I will not book on NCL.

We got the letter from Oceania stating that there is no precruise testing for vaccinated guests age 12+. Kids and unvaccinated guests must test. Feeling stressed about this change. I was also stressed when Viking dropped testing. At least on Viking, guests must be vaccinated. I had the utmost respect for Viking when they did daily Covid testing on ships. It protected everyone. It also made Viking the line with the highest reported positive cases. The other lines didn’t have high numbers since they didn’t test. People got sick on other cruise lines. Since they didn’t need to test, they didn’t report cases. There are many unreported Covid cases. It is still spreading. For your own safety, test before embarking.

I was a bit confused about the water situation before I sailed. The cans of water are included in all drink packages. The bottles of Evian are included in premium package. We drank the cans. Liked the taste. We did bring our own insulated containers to use when off the ship. It worked well.

Foolish to avoid testing. Test for your own safety. You don’t want to get on a ship if you have Covid. No responsible person wants to spread Covid or be sick. Also letting unvaxed people on ships is crazy. Testing protects everyone. Being vaccinated protects you and people you meet. Even with that, people have gotten Covid on cruises. With no testing, Covid cases will increase. NCL is making a dangerous mistake.

When I am home, I go out. I am cautious of where I go. If I go to a store or restaurant that looks crowded, I leave. Being on a cruise ship is very different than being on land.. If I am on a ship, I can’t do that. You are captive. As much as you may try to avoid crowds, at times it is impossible.

On Summit in June. They ran out of all kinds of drinks. Every time we went to a bar, ordering a drink was like playing roulette. Was told sorry, we are out of that too many times. As for ice tea, make your own. Use the tea bags, make tea, add lots of ice. It’s not as convenient as just getting ice tea. It works. With the variety of teas(assuming they haven’t run out), you can enjoy fresh brewed rather than the cruise ice tea mix. Celebrity ice tea mix has sugar in it. My fresh ice tea is sugar free. If you are on drink package or elite plus, get ice tea at Cafe Al Bacio. My favorite is Ceylon gold. Sadly on my cruise, they did run out of some of the specialty teas. I did switch to lemongrass. It was very good.

On Summit in June. Food was good. On the MDR menu, there were lots of beef options. On 2 evenings, roast beef was on the menu. Ate it both times. It was delicious. Portions were very generous.

If you test positive, stay home. Notify Celebrity. Not having travel insurance is a mistake.

Hurricane season officially starts in June. Ends in December. We were on a Bermuda cruise the beginning of June. Had to leave Bermuda a day early due to Alex. Most cruise to Bermuda go during Hurricane season. It can happen. Most of the time, it doesn’t. Chances are good that your cruise will be ok.

If they started the new policy for cruises that haven’t been open for booking, I could understand it. For those of us who are already booked, it is a real disappointment. I trusted that when I booked the safety protocols would be in place. Now it seems like a bait and switch. My cruise in December is already paid with credits from previously canceled cruises. If I don’t sail by end of 2022, my credits will be gone. I will be watching the stats carefully. If there is a big increase in cruise Covid on O, I will not sail…. I will likely never sail on O again. For those people who are happy that you don’t need a negative test before boarding, My advise is test anyway. If you are positive, stay home. Be responsible.

Getting nervous about the new lack of safe protocols. Even with testing, some people got Covid on cruises. My spouse did. Now we are not looking forward to cruising again. We have one future cruise booked using fcc. We may just skip it. We loved cruising before the pandemic.

There are adults only cruises. If you want no kids, look for them. If you travel on longer cruises, expensive cruises, or when schools are in session, you will find few kids. Lines that don’t offer kids activities have few kids. Avoid mass market cruises during school vacations. A Christmas cruise have lots of big family groups with lots of kids. They are mostly well behaved. It never bothered me.

Port of Ravenna has a free shuttle bus from the port to the middle of Ravenna. Ravenna is a beautiful town with places to visit. The mosaics at the cathedral are amazing. There are also excellent cafes and good shopping. If you have seen Venice previously, you should consider a stay in Ravenna.

On recent Summit cruise with All In wasn’t worth it. It seemed like a great deal before we sailed. However, there were lots of drink ingredients unavailable. We were often told no. The included wines were fair to bad. Drank mostly water and diet soda. Even some diet sodas were not available at some bars. We were not sure if there was a shortage of drink suppplies or just a shortage of crew at bars. Either way, we were not getting what we requested. All In WiFi was a joke. It seldom worked. If it did, it was slow. The elite free WiFi worked better. Why? If I were to book another Celebrity cruise, I would do cruise only.

What problem? Booking a suite is a choice, not a problem. If you do it, you may find it difficult going on a cruise in a regular cabin. Some people just enjoy whatever comes their way. For some, any cabin will be good. For others, once in a suite, they won’t be happy in anything else. How you spend your money on whatever vacation you pick is your choice. You are not ruined.

Nice that you enjoyed your cruise. You paid big bucks and were happy. Booking a suite on a mass market ship is not for everyone. We did and thought it was overpriced. Good food, nice cabin space, and good service wasn’t enough. Still on a crowded ship with lots of people coming and going. Packed into tenders, etc. was not good. Moved on. For same money, tried an all suite luxury ship. If I want a cheap cruise, Celebrity veranda is ok. For luxury, not Celebrity.

Paxlovid on the ship is good. It works.

Don’t make assumptions. Disembarked, got in my own car, and drove home. Live close to the port. Never was in an airport, Uber or taxi! Haven’t flown anywhere since March 2020. After we got home, stayed home, did laundry, didn’t see anybody. No question about it. We got Covid on the cruise!

That service isn’t great. 3 day turn around. Folded even when told to iron. Had to chance down clothes at end of cruise. Even free, no worth using. It used to be really good. Like everything, it isn’t what it was before the pandemic. Bring clothing that you can wash out yourself. Leave the heavy clothes home. There lines in the showers. I bring a flexoline that I bought on Magellan. It comes in handy.